


Familial

by coolangelsthesis



Series: parent!NoiAo [2]
Category: DRAMAtical Murder
Genre: Domestic, Domestic Fluff, Established Relationship, Fluff, M/M, One Shot, parent!noiao
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-12-14
Updated: 2014-12-14
Packaged: 2018-03-01 09:18:04
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,800
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2767847
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/coolangelsthesis/pseuds/coolangelsthesis
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Noiz opened the front door to the loft with the gentle <i>click</i> of the lock.<br/>The air was quiet—far too quiet than it had ever been since Aoba moved with him to Germany. There was no whirr of a dishwasher, or the metallic clinking of pots as Aoba cooked, or the sound of footsteps against the hardwood.<br/>He checked the time on his Coil—it was almost 9 PM. Noiz sucked in a painful breath between his front teeth. It had been a long while since he arrived home this late from work. Not since their son was born.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Familial

**Author's Note:**

> Crossposted from tumblr~

Noiz opened the front door to the loft with the gentle _click_ of the lock.  
The air was quiet—far too quiet than it had ever been since Aoba moved with him to Germany. There was no whirr of a dishwasher, or the metallic clinking of pots as Aoba cooked, or the sound of footsteps against the hardwood.  
He checked the time on his Coil—it was almost 9 PM. Noiz sucked in a painful breath between his front teeth. It had been a long while since he arrived home this late from work. Not since their son was born.

Their son, Lukas, was only around a month old, and at the order of his younger brother, Noiz had taken leave off of work to care of him with Aoba. Initially he objected, not wanting to cause too much stress onto his brother by having Theodor take on his workload, as well as his own. But as soon as he held the small bundle in his arms in the hospital room and as felt hot tears roll down his face at the sight of their beautiful, blue-haired son, he knew he couldn’t focus on work for another hour.  
But at the same time, he had projects that he had put on hold nearing the weeks to the birth of his son—and rapidly they were reaching their critical time sensitivity and he needed to finish them as quickly as possible. He talked with Aoba and they both agreed it would be easier for him to spend just one long, grueling day finishing up all the loose ends to the last big assignments that couldn’t easily be done by his assistants or by other people in the company. It was easier than taking several half-days at work.  
And at the end of this long, grueling day, he was _exhausted._ He had spent almost 12 hours working non-stop, only taking occasional breaks to check up on Aoba and Lukas. He was worried about Aoba taking care of their son alone—he knew Aoba was more than capable of doing it, but he didn’t want his husband to be stressed out while having to take care of everything by himself.

Noiz slipped out of his shoes at the front door, a trait he picked up while living in Japan, and wandered around their loft, trying to find Aoba.

Their loft was the pinnacle of modern design—crisp, sleek lines and large windows that poured in abundance of light in the daytime. At night, when the curtains weren’t drawn, glittering yellows and reds from Munich below laid out like flower petals on an inky pool of water. The lifeless air was warmed from trinkets and photos from their various trips around the globe, mostly photos Aoba had taken of the two of them among various famous landmarks. The living room was littered with toys given as gifts from people when their son was born.  
Though no matter where he looked on the first floor, he couldn’t find his son or Aoba anywhere. As he suspected.  
A staircase lead to the upper level—where Noiz’s and Aoba’s bedroom, Noiz’s office/rabbit pen room, and Lukas’ nursery resided. Noiz took these up at two steps at a time, heading directly for the master bedroom.

Noiz opened the door to their bedroom, expecting to find Aoba in bed either toying on his Coil or in the middle of a nap. When he flicked on the lights, however, there was no trace of Aoba anywhere. Their bed was still made and there was hardly any indication that Aoba had been in here lately.  
He let out a soft sigh and pulled off his tie, letting it drape over the top of dresser as he undid his suit jacket.

Blankly, Noiz stared at out into the empty room until something caught his attention-- a red light flickering in the corner of his eye. The baby monitor on his coffee table was active, and Noiz could hear the soft sound of breathing, which sounded like faint static due to the weak signal. The only real indication of activity was the small spikes on the monitor’s screen when weak snoring skirted across the baby’s nursery. Noiz let out a sigh of relief.

Their baby was fine, thank god. Probably asleep by now. And Aoba was probably in there, as well, keeping quiet to monitor their son while he slept.  
All he wanted right now was to see his son and his husband. Quickly he dressed out his suit and into a simpler t-shirt and sweats. He walked out into the long hallway, in the direction of his son’s nursery. There was a faint, yellow light seeping from the crack at the bottom of the door—the front adorned with several rabbit stickers and Lukas’ name spelled out in Katakana. It was Aoba’s idea, and at first prospect he rolled his eyes, but the sight of the cutesy door always warmed his heart. He turned the knob and slowly opened the door.

The sight before him made his heart stutter for a brief second.  
Aoba was sitting in a rocking chair in the far corner of the bedroom, with Lukas curled up in his arms. Encased around their son was a blanket adorned with green and blue rabbits, which draped over Aoba’s chest and legs, as well. Their son was sleeping soundly, with one palm clutching at the front of Aoba's shirt.  
Aoba’s head was turned to the side, and with the light coming from the lamp overhead, Noiz could tell that he was fast asleep, too. His mouth was raised upwards in a light smile, lips slightly ajar with soft snores. His chest rose and fell with every steady breath.

It’s not like Noiz hadn’t ever seen Aoba asleep before—he came home from work on several occasions to find his husband curled up on the couch or in their bed, napping. It was the addition of his son nestled in the crux Aoba’s arms, content in his father’s warmth that made Noiz stop and stare.  
For the first time in his life, he had an actual family. He had two people that loved him with abandon.  
This is what true love felt like—seeing his husband asleep, cradling their son. He wanted to latch onto this memory forever and never forget it. His heart raced and his eyes threatened to make tears spring in his eyes.

Noiz took slow, quiet steps, being as mindful as possible not to rouse Aoba or his son. It must have been an exhaustive day, even if Aoba had told him earlier that everything was running smoothly. The dark circles under Aoba’s eyes said otherwise.

Carefully he lifted Lukas out of Aoba’s arms, draping the excess blanket across his forearms before resting Lukas in the bed of blankets in the crux of his elbow. The baby stirred, but didn’t wake. Noiz carried him to his crib on the other side of the room and set him inside his cot. He ran his hand across the small scalp dusted with soft, fine blue hair. He grabbed a stuffed rabbit sitting on the side of his crib and set it at Lukas’ side, sighing happily to himself as he watched his child settle in his bed.

He turned back around towards Aoba, scooping him in in his arms with ease. Even after years together, Aoba was so light that he could lift him up with hardly any effort.  
His husband grumbled in his sleep and shifted in Noiz’s arms so his face was buried in his shoulder, obstructing the light from the lamp. He switched off the light and carried Aoba out of Lukas’ nursery, closing the door behind him.

He set Aoba down on their bed, working at undoing the still-made sheets so he could drape them over his body. He tucked Aoba into bed, then crawled to his side of the bed, eyes already hallway drooping closed by the time his head fell onto the pillow.  
As soon as he pulled the blankets over his body, a loud, pleading shriek came from the baby monitor.

Even if Aoba had just been fast asleep just moments ago, he stirred in bed and tried to make sense of where he was. But instead of letting Aoba sit up, Noiz gently pushed Aoba back down into bed.  
“I’ll take care of him tonight,” he whispered while pulling the sheets back over Aoba.  
He let out a soft noise of complaint but quickly tucked himself back into the sheets.

Noiz hurried out to the hallway and into Lukas’ bedroom. He unraveled the screaming child from his blanket and lifted him up, supporting his skull up with his palm as he tried to survey in the dark what could be wrong.  
He undid the buttons to the blue onesie and checked inside his diaper—he was perfectly clean. _He must be hungry instead_ , Noiz thought.

He wrapped Lukas up to his chest, rocking him slowly to console the weeping child as he carried him out of the bedroom and down the flight of stairs. But to no avail; Lukas kept wailing and crying.

“Shh… it’s okay, Vati will feed you in just a minute,” he whispered. It always hurt him to hear Lukas cry like this, even if he knew it was a natural stepping stone in their infant’s life. He stepped into the kitchen and peered around. If he remembered correctly, there was premade milk already in bottles inside the fridge. All he had to do was warm up the milk.  
He opened the stainless steel door and winced at the harsh light that flooded his eyes. It took him a moment before his eyes came to, and inside the door’s shelves, baby formula was harbored inside microwavable bottles. He grabbed one and popped it in the microwave.

Aoba had left a sticky note on the front of the microwave, saying how long to microwave the milk for to bring it to the temperature that Lukas liked. Noiz put in the time—around 47 seconds—and waited. As he watched the bottle spin around on the turntable, he bounced Lukas up and down. The movements seemed to calm him a little just in time for the alarm on the microwave to go off.  
As Noiz pulled the bottle out with his free hand, he frowned. It still felt cold. But if Aoba knew what he was doing…

Just to be sure, he stuck his tongue out of his mouth and squeezed a drop of the milk onto his tongue. It tasted less than desirable—like starchy, bitter water, but it was definitely warm enough without being too hot.

Noiz tilted Lukas in his arms and brought the bottle to his lips. All of his son’s cries died as he suckled on the bottle, drinking the formula. His son’s eyes— the same ethereal gold of Aoba’s, his biological father—stared up at Noiz as he drank.  
Noiz stared back, eyes wandering over his son’s face, his tiny fingers, and his little toes that squirmed in his onesie. Noiz beamed at his child as they met eyes.

Once Lukas was half-finished with the bottle, he spat out the rubber nipple with a lone hiccup. Noiz chuckled and set the bottle down on the counter, working one handedly at undoing the lid to dump the remaining milk down the sink drain, then rinse the bottle out. Once he had it sitting on a towel rack to dry, he cupped a hand to Lukas’ skull again and lifted him to his shoulder, patting his back as he carried him up the stairs and back into bed.

Lukas was tired, but he wasn’t complacent on falling back to sleep. He ushered out a soft whine when Noiz carried him back to his cot. Noiz chuckled softly while shaking his head.  
“Just as stubborn as your dad, huh?” he said with a soft sigh. “Well then…”

He didn’t know how exactly he remembered it, but there was a lullaby he heard when he was young that always stuck in the back of his head. It was a faint morsel of warmth he relied to when he had none. Hearing his mother sing to him when he was only a couple of years old.  
He rocked Lukas back and forth, in a gentle, sleep inducing lull; the baby cooed in his arms, staring with wonder into his face. Noiz drew in a large breath, and began to croon.

_“Der Mond ist aufgegangen,_  
_Die goldnen Sternlein prangen_  
_Am Himmel hell und klar;_  
_Der Wald steht schwarz und schweiget,_  
_Und aus den Wiesen steiget_  
_Der weiße Nebel wunderbar.”_

He continued to sing and rock Lukas slowly until the baby’s eyes drew closed and he fell asleep. Noiz laid him down in his cot, curling the blanket around his little body once again. He leaned over the white railing and pressed a kiss to Lukas’ temple.

" _Gute Nacht, Spätzchen,”_ he whispered before pressing another kiss to the center of his forehead. _“Träum was Schönes_."

He left Lukas’ nursery quietly, muffling the sound of the door shutting as much as he could to not rouse his sleeping child. He breathed out a sigh of relief and rubbed his eyes with his palms, yawning as he slunk back into his bedroom. At once his exhaustion hit him like a cargo train, making his movements slow and inarticulate.

He wandered back into the bedroom again and pulled back the sheets and slipped into bed, careful to not wake Aoba from his sleep. He settled into his pillow with a tired sigh and he started up his Coil, ready to check his work e-mail for the last time in a couple weeks.  
He didn’t get to as much as opening his mail when he heard the sheets rustle at his side, and he saw Aoba’s exhausted-looking face behind the dim glow of the hologram screen.

“Aoba, you should be asleep right now,” Noiz’s tone was authoritative, like a stern father. He turned off his Coil, not wanting to make his husband’s eyes sting with the obtrusive light. Instead, Aoba leaned in closer, closing the gap between their bodies on the bed, resting his chin on Noiz’s chest, half-opened eyes staring up into Noiz’s.

“I heard you singing,” Aoba mumbled.  
Noiz must have had a shocked look on his face, because Aoba giggled then nodded to the baby monitor on his side table.  
“You’ve got a nice voice, you know. It’s very beautiful.”  
“Beautiful,” Noiz repeated. He had never heard that word be used about him before. He perked the corner of his lips up in a fond smile. “Do you want me to sing you to sleep, too?”

Aoba merely grinned back as a reply. He shifted in bed and pressed a kiss to Noiz’s lips—before backing away with a bitter look on his face. He made a sour note of disgust in the back of his throat, then wiped his mouth with his hand.  
“Ugh… you taste like milk.” Aoba shuddered, making a point to act melodramatic. “I _hate_ milk.”  
“I know you do, but I had to check the baby formula somehow,” Noiz said.  
“You can use your hand too, you know.”  
“I had a baby in my hands, sorry.” Noiz playfully pinched Aoba’s nose, making him pucker his lips in a scowl.

Aoba settled back into bed by his side; Noiz did the same, curling up on his side so they were laying face to face.  
“I’m sorry again for leaving you alone the entire day,” Noiz said while brushing Aoba’s bangs away from his face.  
“It’s fine. It wasn’t _that_ hard, anyway. And besides, you don’t have to worry about work for a while now, right?”  
Noiz nodded. “Just you and our baby.”  
Aoba held his breath for a moment, expression perplexed. “… That still sounds so weird.”  
“What, that we’re parents?”  
Aoba nodded.

“I know,” Noiz said. He wrapped one arm around Aoba’s waist in a limp hug, drawing him in closer. “You were asleep when I came home, you know. In Lukas’ room. You both looked so peaceful… I… never could have guessed that this is what true happiness feels like.”

Aoba stared at him, speechless for a couple moments. It was rare even now for Noiz to be so open about his feelings. He smiled and moved in closer in their bed, until their chests were pinned to one another.  
“Yeah, me neither.”  
Aoba sighed happily and closed his eyes again, lapping in Noiz’s warmth as exhaustion took the better of him.  
“ _Gute Nacht, Schatz. Träum was Schönes_ ,” Noiz whispered beneath his breath.  
He pressed a gentle kiss to Aoba’s forehead before following him into sleep.

**Author's Note:**

> "Der Mond ist aufgegangen,  
> Die goldnen Sternlein prangen  
> Am Himmel hell und klar;  
> Der Wald steht schwarz und schweiget,  
> Und aus den Wiesen steiget  
> Der weiße Nebel wunderbar.”
> 
> "The moon has risen,  
> The little golden stars shine  
> In the heavens so clear and bright  
> The woods stand dark and still  
> And out of the meadows rise  
> A wonderful fog.”
> 
> “Gute Nacht, Spätzchen. Träum was Schönes.” / “Gute Nacht, Schatz. Träum was Schönes.”
> 
> "Good night, sparrow. Dream of nice things." / "Good night, treasure. Dream of nice things."


End file.
